Not all those who Wander are Lost
by MidnightShadow0110
Summary: Darkness has crept back into the forests of the world, whispers of a nameless fear echo in the wind. The princess' misson of diplomacy must come to an early end so that she may thrust herself into the trecherous journey of the fellowship. The time has come for the racess to converge to change the fortunes of the world.
1. All that is Gold

**New story!**

 **Summary:** ** _Darkness has crept back into the forests of the world, whispers of a nameless fear echo in the wind. The princess' misson of_ _diplomacy_ _must come to an early end so that she may thrust herself into the trecherous journey of the fellowship. The time has come for the racess to converge to change the fortunes of the world. For if the ring shall survive the great eyes sights will be set further than just middle earth._**

 **Yes I know what am I doing writing a new story when I need to be updating my other stories, for those who read my other stories (such as Demon of the Fleeting Cherry Blossom, which I just updated) then you know what I am doing with my other stories for those of you who have not read my latest chapter update of DOTFCB then here is the message:**

NOTE: I know I have been the absolute worst with updating not only this story but my others as well, I will be working on my updating skills. However I have gone back and read over some of my other stories and realize that I don't quite like the direction I was taking them or the way I started them off so a lot of my stories I will be rewirting/revamping. I'm not quite sure yet but I might abandon some of the stories but please don't freak out just yet. If there is another story that you like or love or can't live without that I am writing please just inbox me what it is or post it in a review! I will be continuing with "An angels Blood" since it is so far along, I will also be continueing with "Ripple Effect," "The tainted cherry blossom," and "Of a mothers love and sacrifice." Again I'm sorry for my bad updating habbits but I should be changing that soon.

ANOTHER NOTE!: I have a few new stories that I have been working on as well but I'm trying to be proactive so any new story I post be assured that I have already written at least two more chapters ahead of time so that they are ready to be posted so pleast don't hate me!

 **Now that we have that out of the way, I've been stewing with a Naruto Lord of the Rings cross over forever! And since there are not many out there I decided my story should be told!**

 **Note that I will make some changes to LotR and Naruto so do not be mad with me when I don't fallow everything to a T, also my elvish might not be completly accurate. (Story is set 4 years after chapter 699 in Naruto and starts with the fellowship of the ring)**

 **So here it is the first chapter to "Not all those who wander are lost"**

* * *

 **All that is Gold**

 _I amar prestar aen_

 _The world has changed..._

 _Han mathon ne nen_

 _I feel it in the water..._

 _Han mathon ne chae_

 _I feel it in the earth..._

 _A han noston ned 'wilith_

 _I smell it in the air..._

 _Much that once was is lost... for none now live that remember it._

 _It began with the forging of the great rings._

 _Three were given to the elves, immortal, wisest, and fairest of all beings._

 _Seven to the dwarf-lords, great miners, and craftsmen of the mountain halls._

 _And nine... nine rings were given to the race of men, who, above all else, desire power._

 _For within these rings was bound the strength and will to govern each race._

 _But they were all of them deceived... For another ring was made._

 _In the land of Mordor, in the fires of Mount Doom the dark lord Sauron forged in secret a master ring, to control all others. And in this ring he poured his cruelty, his malice and his will to dominate all life._

 _One ring to rule them all._

 _One by one, the free lands of Middle Earth fell to the power of the ring._

 _But there were some who resisted._

 _A last alliance of men and elves marched against the armies of Mordor, and on the slopes of Mount Doom they fought for the freedom of Middle Earth._

 _Victory was near._

 _But the power of the ring could not be undone._

 _It was in this moment when all hope had faded that Isildur, son of the king, took up his fathers sword._

 _Sauron, the enemy of the free peoples of Middle Earth was defeated._

 _The ring passed to Isildur who had this one chance to destroy the evil forever... but the hearts of men are easily corrupted... And the ring of power has a will of its own._

 _It betrayed Isildur... to his death. And some things that should not have been forgotten were lost._

 _History became legend, legend became myth, and for two and a half thousand years the ring passed out of all knowledge._

 _Until, when chance came it ensnared a new bearer._

 _The ring came to the creature Gollum, who took it deep into the tunnels of the Misty Mountains and there... it consumed him._

 _The rings brought Gollum unnatural long life. For five hundred years it poisoned his mind. And in the gloom of Gollum's cave it waited._

 _Darkness crept back into the forests of the world, rumor grew of a shadow in the East, whispers of a nameless fear. And the ring of power perceived its time had now come._

 _It abandon Gollum... but something happened then the ring did not intend. It was picked up by the most unlikely creature imaginable..._ _A hobbit, Bilbo Baggins of the Shire._

 _For the time will soon come when hobbits and Shinobi will shape the fortunes of us all..._

* * *

The midday air was cool and crisp as a light breeze blew past three figures. The area around where these figures stood was filled with craters, burn marks, and many other unnatural alterations from its former beautiful grassy plane. The three figures all breathed heavily, all exhausted from their previous activities.

Sakura fell to the cool grassy ground in an ungraceful heap. Her short pink locks clung to her face and neck as beads of sweat trickled down her prorclien skin. Her chest rose and fell quickly as she tried to catch her breath. She heard three thumps and felt the slight vibration of the ground beneath her indicating her boys had fallen to the ground next to her. Sakura giggled as she heard their heavy breathing. She had just finished a sparing match with her three teammates only moments ago and was now enjoying the cool breeze as it kissed her damp skin.

It had been four blissful years of peace, not only in the fire country but in the other four nations as well. The fight against Madara had left the five nations more than willing to abide with a peace treaty. Sakura didn't know that peace could have ever been a possibility in this world but she had been proven wrong. Sakura sighed as she sat up from her wonderful spot on the ground, crawling over to her teammates to heal their injuries, she went over to Kakashi first knowing he had been hit pretty bad with Naruto's resengian.

While the nations were currently at peace that did not mean that missions didn't continue to roll in, there were still rouge nin, as well as human trafficking and kidnappings. But the highest ranking mission any of the four had seen in a long time was a B ranked mission. Even then the mission hadn't been too difficult and now a days the four found themselves on escorting missions, which was just a way to glorify babysitting a rich kid.

When Sakura had finished with Kakashi's wounds she moved onto Sasuke.

During the war Sasuke had switched back to Konoha's side and fought along side them to defeat Madara. At first when the war had been won and everyone was starting to rebuild their lives, team 7 had a hard time getting used to Sasuke being back, but he wasn't the same Sasuke he used to be when they were genin. He had changed, and for the better in Sakura's opinion, he was much more light hearted and smiled more, well smirked more and really started to let all of the members of team 7 into his life. He had even asked Sakura out on a date about a year ago, but Sakura kindly turned him down knowing that she would not be able to give him what he wanted at this point in his life.

After that they had become close friends, as well as becoming one of the most feared teams the shinobi world had seen since the legendary sanin. Sakura was quite proud of her progress as a shinobi as well as a healer, she had surpassed Tsunade in healing abilities and was on par with Sasuke and Naruto's fighting abilities. She had come a long way since her genin days and she was pretty proud of herself for that.

Sakura stopped with her healing when she heard something, or someone heading their way, it only took the boys a few moments after to notice as well. All four shinobi stood, their hands on their weapons ready to attack if needed, although it was a time of peace that did not mean they could not and would not still be cautious. Within two minutes a woman dropped down from the trees in front of the group.

"Astela?" Sakura voiced, a confused look on her face as she looked at the woman that stood before them. Sasuke, Naruto, and Kakashi all gave Sakura a questioning look, all of them wondering where Sakura had met this girl before. The woman was tall and slender, her skin was porcline pale and her face was almost doll like, she wore a white dress with long sleeves and slits on either side of the skirt leading up to her thighs so that she could run, underneath she wore white pants. Her hair was a mix between red and brunette and was braided around her head so as to keep stray hairs out of her face, but the strangest thing about this woman were her ears, they were pointed at the ends.

Astela knelled in front of Sakura, bowing her head, "Milady, your father has requested you to come home." The woman said making everyone blanch.

 _'Milady? Sakura!?'_ All three men thought as they looked between their pink haired team mate to this new woman that Sakura somehow knew.

Sakura stared down at the woman confused, she wasn't supposed to go back home for years, what could have happened to make her father want her to come home? "What has happened Astela?" Sakura asked dreading the answer, she knew something must have happened for her father to call her back home, there was no other explanation.

"Lord Elrond believes that war will come upon the lands." Astela said in a strained voice, she knew Sakura would ask questions but she did not want to be the one to tell her that her country was in danger.

Sakura's eyes went wide, if what Astela said was true and war was upon them then there was no getting around it she would have to go home, her people needed her. Sakura tried to keep her composure as she nodded to Astela, she was about to head off toward the Hokage's tower when Sasuke spoke up.

"What's going on?" The question was so simple and vague but Sakura knew he was not just asking about Astela's presence. In all honestly Sakura had forgotten her boys were there with her, she had been too shocked by Astela's presence.

Sakura looked between her three boys knowing she owed them an explanation but she needed to hurry. "I will explain, but we need to get to Tsunade's office now." Sakura said her voice dripping with urgency, trying to make the boys understand that the situation was urgent. She looked from one to the other waiting for them to agree, it only took a few minutes before she saw Naruto nod his head in understanding.

After that Sakura took off, moving faster than any of the males had ever seen her move, Astela followed them easily keeping up with their pace which surprised Sasuke and Kakashi. But Sakura had told them that she would explain and they knew she would. It took them minutes before they reached the Hokage's tower, Sakura didn't even bother with knocking as she walked into Tsunade's office, having already checked for another chakra signature.

Tsunade stared at Sakura surprised by her out of character rude behavior, she could expect Naruto to burst into her office at any time but Sakura had always been the curtiouse one. "Sakura what is the meaning of this?" Tsunade said wanting to be mad at her student for barging in but once she took notice of her face she knew something was wrong.

"My mission is ending early." Sakura said standing up straight as she looked her leader straight in the eye. This sentence only seemed to confuse everyone in the room but the three woman.

"Has something happened?" Tsunade said worry falling over her eyes, she motioned for Kakashi to close the doors to her office that had been left open. Sakura was about to answer when Naruto inturupted.

"Okay, somebody explain what the hell is going on!" Naruto said getting tired of not knowing about anything they were talking about.

Sakura sighed, she knew once Astela told her she was needed back home she was going to have to tell her team mates about her secret but she had no clue about how they would react, honestly she had never thought they would have to find out. Sakura turned away from the Hokage's desk to face her three boys, this was not something she ever thought she would have to face but it was inevitable now.

"I have not been truthful about who I am." Sakura said starting in a place she thought was best. She took in a deep breath as she put her hands together in a seal releasing sign. She whispered out a small 'Kai' before a large puff of smoke surrounded her. Once the smoke cleared three sets of male eyes widened at what they saw. Standing before them was not the 20 year old Sakura they knew but a late twenties to thirty year old mature version of her.

Her chopped short hair was now long and reached her waist, the color went from a pastel pink to a deep pink, almost red. Her skin was now porcelain and seemed to almost glow, her emerald eyes were now the color of jade and were framed by thick, dark lashes. Her physic was different as well, she still stood at a short 5'5" but her once almost flat chest filled out, not by much but it gave her body a bit more of a generous curve, her hips stayed about the same, but no longer gave her body a pear shape, and her legs seemed almost longer and leaner. The last thing that had changed but somehow seemed to stand out the most were Sakura's ears, they came to a point at the ends, just like Astela's.

"My name really is Sakura, but I am not a shinobi from the village of konoha. I'm from a far away land called middle earth, more specifically the elven land of Rivendell." Sakura said trying to stay composed as she looked at her friends to see how they would respond. She knew it wasn't fair of her to hope they would forgive her for lying to them but it didn't stop the feeling of dread from rising up in her stomach. She looked between her boys then back to Tsunade and Astela.

"If your from this elven city, then that would make you..." Naruto started to say but his question faded off as he looked at Sakura for answers.

"An elf yes, more specifically she is the heir to Rivendell, a princess if you will." Tsunade said smirking as Naruto's jaw dropped, she knew she shouldn't be getting a kick out of this but the look on the blonde males face was truly priceless.

Sasuke stood quietly but his face told Sakura that he did not believe what she was saying. At least not the part about being an elf, which she understood, no such creatures were seen as real here, they were merely children's stories.

"I know it is a hard concept to grasp, since such creatures do not hale in this country. But I assure you I am an elf, I have lived for over 2,000 years, I have seen many of your life times and and learned more than you could ever hope to grasp within your one lifetime." Sakura said her voice taking on that of someone of high power. It shocked the men in the room to hear her like this. Normally she was yelling at them to stop fighting but now she sounded like royalty.

"How could you have lived for over 2,000 years? It is impossible." Sasuke said still being skeptical about the whole thing, he had never heard of anyone living past 150, other than Madara but he had technically been resurrected.

Sakura sighed she should have known that Sasuke wouldn't just except the idea so easily and Kakashi didn't look like his train of thought was much further away from Sasuke's. She let out another breath, "Efls are born just as humans are and we grow in a sense just as you do. But when an elf reaches maturity they do not age, we are immortal and can live on forever. We can die if we are fatally injured or if we lose the will the live but otherwise we do not age."

Sasuke still did not seem quite as convinced as Sakura would have liked but she knew there were other questions in the air and she was still in a hurry.

"If you are from this far away place then why are you here?" Kakashi asked, speaking for the first time since they had arrived, Sakura had been waiting for this question and she knew she should have expected Kakashi to ask it.

"My father wished to make an alliance with your people. So he sent me here to try and make this alliance but Sarutobi was a bit wary of us and so we made a deal, I would go undercover as a shinobi of this village and learn your ways while being under close watch. So Sarutobi placed a genjutsu over my body so that I looked like a young child from this village. It was right before Sarutobi passed away that he decided to accept our alliance, from then on my father thought it would be beneficial for me to stay here and live out one of your lives to learn all I could from you before I came home. Tsunade has been the only one who has known about me since Sarutobi died." Sakura said explaining her presence in Konoha and the reason why Tsunade had not been surprised in the least when Sakura dropped her genjutsu.

Sakura stood there waiting to see what her friends would say, they were never supposed to find out, she was supposed to live out a generation here and then leave after they were all gone, no one was supposed to know about her until the Hokage announced their alliance with the elfs.

Naruto was the first to speak after what felt like a long awkward silence, "So you are an elf, and a princess, why didn't you tell us before? We are your friends." Naruto said looking a little hurt that he had been kept in the dark about this whole thing. Sakura looked down in guilt, this is what she was trying to avoid when she didn't tell them.

"That would be the fault of Sarutobi and myself, we believed that if Sakura were to expose herself to you or anyone you would think she was a traitor or you would not be able to trust her and then the alliance Sakura has spent years trying to build up would fall through." Tsunade said answering Naruto's question seeing as Sakura didn't seem like she was going to answer it. Naruto and the others seemed to think about this for a moment. In truth it made sense, it was a bit harder to trust Sakura now, of course they didn't think she was a traitor, they knew better than that but that didn't mean others wouldn't have different views on the matter.

There was a long period of silence and Sakura could tell the boys were thinking long and hard about this situation but she knew she didn't have time to wait around so she turned back to Tsunade. "Astela says that my father believes that war is coming upon our land. My father would not send someone for me unless it was of the utmost importance." Sakura said her voice as serious as Tsunade had ever heard her.

She knew that Sakura would go regardless of what she said and this was just a formality but that did not stop her from worrying. Even if Sakura was not human she still thought of her as a daughter, a daughter that was much older than her but she still felt a mothering quality over the girl. "When will you leave?" Tsunade asked looking at her student with sad eyes, she knew that this might be it, this might be the last time she ever sees Sakura again.

"I will leave tonight." Sakura said her voice sounding like she had decided before she was even asked. Sakura knew what she had to do and there was no time for goodbyes and explanations.

"Wait a minute! your just going to leave so suddenly?!" Naruto yelled sounding almost mad but Sakura knew better he was more surprised than anything and probably sad as well.

"My people need me Naruto, it takes 7 days by boat to get to Middle Earth and from there it takes 3 days by foot to get to Rivendale." Sakura said trying to make her friend understand. While she had made a life for herself here she had another life, one she had lived in much longer than she had here and she had an obligation to go to them in their time or need.

"Konoha will come to your aid." Tsunade said her voice stern, she had made this alliance fully knowing it might lead to another war that they would have had no part in otherwise. But Sakura had been an invaluable asset to the last war and they probably would have lost many more people if it wasn't for her. She knew that the alliance worked both ways, many elfs had been sent undercover to aid them in their fight and now it was their turn.

"I will not ask this of you now, I do not know what it is that makes my father think war is upon us but I implore you to stay here for now. I will call on you once we know what we are up against." Sakura tried to reason, looking into her teachers eyes. Tsunade knew this was not an insult, far from it. It was Sakura's way of saying she did not want to needlessly put them in danger. This made Tsunade smile, Sakura was such a kind person, she was one worthy of immorality because many generations should be able to know someone like her.

"We will come with you." Sasuke said surprising everyone in the room especially Sakura. That had been the last thing she thought she would have heard from Sasuke, she could see Naruto saying it but Sasuke was a different story. She wondered what made him come up with this resolve, she had just told him that she had lied to him and that she was leaving them yet he wanted to come with her.

Sakura looked down, she didn't want to put her friends in danger unless the situation became dire. "No you will stay here." Sakura said with much more authority that anyone had ever heard her speak with. Sasuke gave her his signature glare not understanding why she refused him.

"My world is much different than yours. There are customs you must learn, creatures you must learn to fight alongside or against. I wish for you to stay here and learn about my people and the land I come from, Tsunade has gathered more than enough information to help you, and if a war is indeed going to happen I will call for you." Sakura said trying to reason with the Uchiha, it was true she knew if she just brought them along so suddenly they would offend many people and cause unnecessary problems. Not only that but how could she expect them to know how to fight creatures they had never even heard of before. The whole situation would put them in great danger and she would not allow it.

Sasuke looked like he was going to oppose her and so did Naruto but Sakura held her ground, she knew that they would see it her way whether they liked it or not. After what seemed like hours Sasuke looked away and Sakura knew that was his way of saying he would do what she said for now.

"Thank you." Sakura said looking at her boys with the love that only many years of growing together could bring. She was sad that she was going to leave without saying good bye to pretty much everyone but she was glade she could at least give her good byes to the three most important men to her in Konoha.

Sakura walked over to Naruto first giving the blonde a hug, she never wanted to leave, she felt tears welling up in her eyes but willed them back. He had become a rock to her in this world. When everything seemed to be going wrong he was there to right it and when she felt home sick he was there to make everyone place she went feel like home. She looked into blue cerulean eyes like she had done so many times before before moving over to Kakashi.

She gave her long term teacher a hug, he had been somewhat of a father figure to her since she was so far away from her own father. He had been wise words from this world when she simply could not find the answers she seeked. And he had been a warm heart and an open ear for her anytime she had needed him.

Next was Sasuke, She had mixed feeling about the dark haired man. When they were genin she had genuinely had feelings for him, she had never been around men that she could see as more than a comrade much in her home land. She had even studied how normal teenage girls would act when they liked a boy. But the more time she spent with the boy the more her feeling developted and the more the situation she was in felt too much like the one her sister had found herself in. Sakura knew the moment that she was fallowing in Arewn's foot steps that she had to shut out the feelings she had for the dark haired boy. She did not want her heart to break into nothingness once the Uchiha's inevitable death came to pass. So when Sasuke finally returned her feelings she knew she had to turn him away, she could not give him what he wanted, and he would not live long enough to give her what she wanted.

He wanted a wife and children and she knew they would never be able to have a normal life together like he wanted. She could not bring herself to put herself through what her sister had.

Lastly she looked at her blonde haired teacher, the two stared at each other for a moment and shared a none physical goodbye. The blonde had truly been the mother figure that Sakura had missed since her own mother had passed away. She wanted to give Tsunade the world for all the kindness she had shown her and now that she was being forced to leave she knew that she would never be able to do so. Sakura placed her closed fist over her heart before extending it toward the blonde, opening her hand in the process. It was a gesture to say goodbye to a loved one from her people but she knew Tsunade knew what she meant.

Sakura stepped toward the large window of the Hokage's office and looked back at her friends, " _Cormamin niuve tenna' ta elea lle au_ '" Sakura said in a soft voice, fighting back the tears in her eyes once again.

She gave a slight smile at the confused faces of the people in front of her, "In my touge that means, My heart shall weep until it sees thee again." Sakura said giving everyone a soft smile and within the blink of an eye she was gone.

* * *

Sakura stared out at the vast rolling waves as they passed, the salty ocean breeze caressed her face. Sakrua and Astela had set off to sea hours ago and Sakura could no longer see the shore line that connected to the land of the five great nations. She knew that she would one day have to leave this place but she hadn't thought it would be so suddenly. She thought she would get to say good bye to all the people she had grown close to as their short lives ended.

She had wanted to live with them longer, see them grow into fine young men and women. To see them get married and have children and watch as their children grow up as her friends grew older. She had wanted so much more time with them and now she didn't know when or if she would ever see them again. The time it took to run through the rest of their life span was not even a blink of the eye in her time.

Sakura sighed as she pulled out a folded picture from her back pocket. It had a small tear at the corner and was creased in a few places but the picture was as clear as the day she framed it. It was a picture of team 7 they day they became a team. It was one of the few things she brought with her before she left, she had grabbed a few other pictures, the twin swords Kakashi had given to her for her birthday that had her name engraved on them, her weapons and medical books all sealed into a scroll and her forehead protector.

She sighed once again looking out in the direction of the shore, she knew it was a long shot but she was determined to see her friends again, someday.

 **So what did you think?! Keep in mind this is just the prologue So I made it a bit short.**

 **Please tell me what you thought and leave a review!**

 **You all know the drill 10 reviews till the next update (which is already written)!**

 **Until next time,**

 **MidnightShadow0110**


	2. Does not Glitter

**So not quite 5 reviews but I'll go ahead and post this chapter since the first was a bit of a prolog.**

 **I did go through this with a finner toothed comb so hopfully there are less grammer errors,**

 **but here it is the second chapter of Not all those who Wander are Lost**

* * *

 **Does not Glitter**

Sakura walked amongst the castle halls of Rivendell, she had missed the pristine beauty of her home. The white winding vein like structure of the buildings, the way the buildings were built so perfectly into the forest that it looked like it was meant to be there from the beginning. The soft lull of water from the great waterfalls and the Medline chirp of the birds as they sang; their song flooded Sakura's ears. The heels of her shoes made a light clicking sound as she walked on white marble floors. While Sakura loved living in Konoha she felt there was no place more beautiful than Rivendell.

It had been almost a week and a half since Sakura left Konoha for home and she had just arrived an hour ago. When she first arrived she was whisked away by a few of the maids so that she could change, Sakura giggled at the thought of her father seeing her in the scandals cloths of her ninja gear, she knew it was unseemly for someone of her standing but the look she imagined on her father's face was priceless. Now Sakura was wearing a silk white dress that fell to her feet, the sleeves were long and bell shaped at the ends. Her hair had been pulled half up with two braids, a small vine like tiara warped around her head, and her hair twisted around it on the sides.

Unbeknownst to the maids Sakura had put her kunai hustler back on her thigh once they had left, she didn't feel quite right without it. At the moment Sakura was looking for her father, she wanted to know the reason she had been called back so soon. She walked around for what felt like hours when she finally found him talking to an old man that she knew was Gandalf the grey.

Her father was no different from the day she had left his hair was still the same chocolate brown pulled back in the same looping hair style as before. His blue eyes were the same as her sisters; there were a few features Sakura had that took after her father, such as her nose and the shape of her eyes. But she mostly took after her late mother; Sakura's sister took more after their father. Gandalf unlike her father had changed a bit since she had last seen him. His long grey beard seemed longer if that were possible. She could detect a few more wrinkles on his face, but otherwise he still seemed like he had a hop in his old step.

Sakura noticed that the two were in the middle of a conversation and decided to eavesdrop a bit to see what they were talking about, she quietly pushed some chakra into the soles of her feet and started to claim the wall all the way up to the ceiling.

"The hobbit has come quite far, showing a large amount of resilience against the rings evil." Sakura's father Elrond said speaking to the old wizard next to him.

Sakura stared at her father, ' _what ring is he speaking of, it couldn't be_ the _ring...?'_ Sakura thought, she wondered if their conversation was about the reason she had been asked to come home.

"It is a burden he should have never had to bare; we can ask no more of Fordo." Gandalf said his voice holding reasoning behind it as well as concern.

"Gandalf, the enemy is moving. Sauron's forces are massing in the east; his eye is fixed on Reivendell. And Saruman, you say has betrayed us, our list of allies grows thin," Elrond said his voice raising a bit. This made Sakura's eyes widen, she had only ever been told one story about someone named Sauron. He was an evil man with great power, and was the one true master of the _ring._ Sakura had to stop herself from speaking, as she continued to listen hoping against all odds that her father was not saying what she thought he was.

"Sarumon is breeding an army in the mines of Isengard, an army that can move in sun light. Saruman is coming for the ring." Gandalf said confirming part of Sakura's fears, if Sarumon was breeding an army then she knew he would not stop with having the ring, he was truly gearing up for a war.

"This evil cannot be concealed by the power of the elves. We do not have the strength to fight both Mordor and Isengard! The ring cannot stay here." Elrond said his voice rising before fading off at the end. Sakura had to stop herself from gasping; Isengard would be enough of a foe to face but if they were allied with Mordor then this was bad, not only for Rivendell but other elven and human cities as well. This was not good. Gandalf seemed to be having the same train of thought as Sakura, his face wrinkled with worry and thought. This was a battle that had been stirring for 3,000 years.

"This parrel belongs to all of Middle earth, they must deiced now how to end it." Elrond continued, his voice held wisdom and knowing, he knew that not one nation would be able to stand alone in this fight. "The time of the elf's is ending, my people are leaving these shores who will you go to when we are gone? The dwarfs? They hide in the mountains seeking nothing but riches, they care noting for the troubles of others." Elrond looked at Gandalf with a serious look.

Sakura deiced now would be a good time to make herself known; she stopped the flow of chakra to her feet letting her body fall to the ground. She flipped at the last minute and landed on her feet in front of her father. "I did not know you had become so cynical father, nor did I think you would turn your back on this land." Sakura said in a reprimanding voice, she hated how her father spoke in his last sentence.

"Sakura I did not know you had arrived already." Elrond said, ignoring his daughter's lack of manners knowing she had been eavesdropping. Elrond walked up to his daughter and wrapped his arms around his first born. Sakura hugged her father back having not seen him for 15 years, but she still wanted all of her questions answered.

"Is this why you have called me back home? Because Sarumon and Sauron are breading an army to take back the ring?" Sakura said a serious look falling over her face as she stared her father down, she knew that he would rather keep her out of these sorts of things but she was not one to sit idly by.

Sakura waited for her father's response, he seemed a bit reluctant to say anything and seemed to be choosing his words carefully, making Sakura think whatever he was about to say wasn't going to be the whole truth. "We believe that he is not only after the ring but the eliminate men and elf's alike."Elrond said looking his daughter in the eye.

Sakura could tell by the sound in his voice he was telling her the truth but she did not miss the fact that he did not tell her what they planned to do to stop this from happening. "So the ring has been found?" Sakura asked trying to pry more information from her father.

But Elrond turned away from her and started to walk off, "I need to go greet our guests, we will talk later Sakura." The lord said making Sakura steam, she hated when he did that. He would always just walk away from her if he did not want to answer her questions and it angered her to no end.

"Do not worry my dear, if you happen to drop by the north wing in about an hour you might find the answers to your questions." Gandalf said as he walked away, giving the pink haired woman a mischievous smile as he left.

Sakura smiled to herself, loving how Gandalf's mischievous nature had stayed the same over the years. She decided she would take Gandalf's advice and walk by the north wing in an hour, until then she decided she would take a stroll around the castle; it had been a long time since she had been home.

It didn't take long before she came across two very familiar faces. Her sister Arwen and the man she loved Aragorn were exchanging in what looked like a deep conversation. Sakura and Arwen had known Aragorn since his mother brought him to Rivendell to grow up when he was a child. The two had watched the boy grow into a man and Sakura in turn had watched her sister fall deeper and deeper in love with the human.

In truth she felt deeply sorry for her sister, to love someone who could only share one life time with her was devastating, and their father did not approve of it at all. Sakura knew her father just wanted his daughter to live a long happy life but Sakura knew that Arwen was never happier than she was when in Aragorn's presence. It was her hope that her sister would find happiness in living a life with a human, Aragorn did have a longer life span than normal humans but he was still human and he would still die long before Arwen.

Once their passionate encounter seemed to be over Sakura walked over to the two. "Sakura!?" Arwen said in surprise as she noticed her sister's presence, Elrond had not told her that he had asked for Sakura to come home so seeing her was a complete surprise.

" _Nae saian luume'_ (It has been too long)." Sakura smiled at her sister and Aragorn. She wrapped her arms around her younger sister having to stand on her tip toes to match her height. While Sakura was the elder sister she was cursed with her lack of height and was shorter than almost everyone aside from dwarfs and hobbits. Sakura pulled back to get a better look at her sister, she looked the same as she did the day she had left of course. Her brilliant blue eyes shone with as much vibrancy as they had before, her long chocolate locks were still lush and beautiful and her elven frame was still the picture of beauty, just like the day she had left.

Sakura then turned to Aragorn giving him a hug as well. Aragorn also had not changed since the day she left, his shoulder length brown hair was tussled and the beard on his face was an un-kept scruff. His blue eyes were still the color of the ocean and he still stood a good foot taller than herself, the only thing that indicated that time had passed for the man were the slight wrinkles near his eyes that only showed themselves when he smiled.

"When did you arrive?" Arwen asked a smile ever present on her face as she looked at her sister.

"I just arrived a few hours ago, Father sent Astela to tell me to come home." Sakura said waiting for her sister's reaction; she didn't want to tell Arwen anything she didn't know. Arwen was a skilled worrier but she was not one that would be fit to leave Rivendell if a war was about to start. Sakura didn't want to take the chance of stressing her sister so she left her explanation at that and decided not to elaborate.

They stood there enjoying each other's presence for a while before Aragorn spoke up, "Well I am needed at a meeting so I will bid you both a farewell for now."Aragorn said as he bowed before walking off.

Sakura waited a few moments after he was gone before she headed off in the same direction. "Sakura I don't think you're supposed to be going to the meeting." Arwen said stopping Sakura in her tracks. Arwen knew her sister well enough to know that she was attempting to spy on the meeting that was about to take place.

"And when has that ever stopped me before." Sakura said giving her sister a mischievous smile before she continued on after Aragorn.

* * *

Sakura stood behind a large pillar just outside a large round balcony that held a combination of men, elves, dwarfs a hobbit and a wizard. She concealed her chakra so that not even the elves would be able to sense her presences as she listened in on the meeting.

"Strangers from distant lands, friends of old, you have been summoned here to answer the threat of Mordor. Middle earth stands on the brink of destruction, none can escape it. You will unite or you will fall. Each race is bound to this fate, this one doom." Elrond's voice echoed around the round balcony, as he started the meeting off. Sakura could tell by her father's voice that the matter of this meeting was of the utmost importance. She listened carefully to what was said next.

"Bring forth the ring, Frodo." Elrond said in a commanding voice. A small man, a hobbit walked to the center of the balcony where a small stone, round table lay. The man was small, and looked like a child if one did not look close enough. He had a mop of brunette curly hair, his eyes were the color of icy blue and seemed innocent to the troubles of war and tragedy. He pulled out something from his pocket and placed it in the middle of the table. It was a golden ring, at first glance it looked like an ordinary ring but the ora around the ring told a different story.

Once the ring had been placed on the table everyone seemed to fixate on it, like it was drawing them all in. Even from the behind the pillar Sakura could feel its powerful pull and she understood why this ring was so powerful and so dangerous. It's like it called to whoever was around it, like the ring had a mind of its own. It gave false promises of power but Sakura knew better, she knew the ring answered to one person alone and that was Sauron. The ring would always try to go back to Sauron and would trick anyone it could so it could get closer to him.

"It is a gift." One of the men in the group whispered, Sakura could feel the greed in his voice. She looked around the corner to see what the man looked like; he was tall, like most men. He had shoulder length dirty blonde hair and sported a beard on his face; Sakura could see the arrogance in his green eyes. "A gift to the foes of Mordor. Why not use this ring?" The man continued as he stood up from his seat and walked toward the ring. "Long has my father the Stewart of Gondor kept the forces of Mordor at bay. By the blood of our people are your lands kept safe. Give Gondor the weapon of the enemy; let us use it against them!" The man continued to preach, his voice rising. Sakura could tell he thought he should have full rights to the ring for what his people had done for Middle Earth.

Sakura didn't like the man's tone, it seemed like the ring had already taken hold of this man by just being in his presence.

"You cannot wield it. No one can." Aragorn spoke up, his voice stern and full of wisdom. Sakura smiled knowing Aragorn would be the one to stop the man's ranting. "The rings answers to Sauron alone, it has no other master." Aragorn said finishing off his explanation to the greedy man.

Sakura wanted to cheer for her long term friend but knew she would blow her cover if she did so, so she stayed quiet and waited to see what would be said next.

"And what would a ranger know of this matter?" The man from before said, his voice full of arrogance and false authority. Sakura wanted to punch the man in the face, how dare he say such things, he may be the Stewart of Gondors son but he had no real authority here, he was a guest.

"He is no mere ranger. This is Aragorn, son of Arithron. You owe him your allegiance." One of the Elves stood in Aragorn's defense. He had elven signature golden blonde long hair that was pulled half up with two braids on the sides that came together in the back. His eyes were the color of emeralds and he wore the traveling cloak of the elves of Mirkwood. Sakura knew who this was; he was Legolas, son of Thurdiull and the prince of Mirkwood. She had seen him maybe once or twice in her travels to Mirkwood but she had never personally met him before.

"Aragorn? This is Isildur's heir?" The man said his face dropping once he could see who Aragorn really was, Sakura wanted to giggle at his reaction, if she could have a picture of his face right at that moment it would be perfect. Sakura knew Aragorn was the heir to Gondor but had refused to step up as king for all his long years of life, afraid that he would follow in his father's footsteps.

"And heir to the throne of Gondor." Legolas continued the man's sentence for him, a smirk playing on his face as he revealed Aragorn's identity.

 _"Please, sit down, Legolas."_ Aragorn said in a soft voice in an elfish tongue, trying to avoid any conflicts that might arise if this conversation continued to go on. Sakura smiled at Aragorn's antics, he truly would make a great king, he knew how to reach out to people and not be bias while hearing their opinions.

"Gondor has no king. Gondor needs no king." The man said as he walked passed Aragorn staring him down the whole way back to his seat. It took all Sakura had not to jump out from behind the pillar and knock the arrogant look off the man's face. Who did he think he was!? Whether Aragorn was currently the king of Gondor or not meant nothing, he was the true king and a man of Gondor... no any man should show him respect.

There was a long silence over the group before Gandalf decided to speak, "Aragorn is right, we cannot use it." His voice was stern and gave no room for argument.

"You have only one choice, the ring must be destroyed." Elrond said standing from his seat to address everyone of their only option. Sakura took notice of the many reactions from everyone that sat circled around the ring, Especially the man from before who looked especially disappointed that that was the conclusion they had come up with.

"What are we waiting for then." One of the dwarfs said in a gruff voice, he was short like the hobbit but unlike the hobbit he would not be mistaken for a child due to his long unruly brown hair and beard. The dwarf Stood from his seat before walking up to the ring, he pulled out an axe that had been on his hip holster and raised it above his head before slamming it down onto the ring. To some of the people in the circles surprise the axe shattered into pieces while the rings stayed completely intact. The dwarf that had tried and failed to destroy the ring was flung to the ground by the force of his axe shattering.

"The ring cannot be destroyed, Gimli son of Gloin, by any craft that we here process." Elrond said seeming completely unfazed the rings indestructible nature while others in the group seemed quite alarmed by what had just occurred. "The ring was made in the fires of mount doom, only there can it be unmade. It must be taken deep within Mordor and cast back into the fiery chasm from which it came" Elrond finished his explanation on how to destroy the ring. "One of you must do this."

It was then that it all clicked in Sakura's head, this meeting was to determine who would take on this dangerous quest to destroy the ring, and it was this one quest that would determine the fate of everyone. She almost felt her heart stop from this confirmation, such a heavy burden would ride on this one mission or everyone would be doomed.

The area was quite once again as everyone took in this new information. "One does not simply walk into Mordor." The man from before said his voice full of malice. "Its black gates are guarded by more than just orks. There is evil there that does not sleep, and the great eye is ever watchful. It is a wasteland riddled with ash, fire and dust, the very air you breathe is a poisonous fume. Not with ten thousand men could you do this. It is folly" The man finished whispering the last part but it felt like he might as well have screamed it, for his words spoke volumes.

While Sakura didn't like the man too much from her first impression he was right, sneaking into Mordor was a feat in and of itself not only that but the journey there would be treacherous. It would not be a journey for the faint of heart.

"Have you heard nothing Lord Elrond just said? The ring must be destroyed!" Legolas stood once again. Sakura could tell he was somewhat of a hot head and seemed to jump at the chance to say exactly what he thought or felt.

"And I suppose you think you're the one to do it!" Gimli yelled an angry look in his eye and Sakura knew right then and there an argument was about to break out. The long lived rivalry between elf's and dwarfs was still very much alive and the bad blood still ran freely between the two races.

"And if you fail what then?" The man said standing from his seat as well raising his voice as he stood. "What happens when Sauron takes back what is his?!" The man's voice was full of conviction and greed. Sakura knew the underlying meaning behind his words, he was saying if he had the ring it would not have a chance of falling into the hands of Sauron.

"I will be dead before I see the ring in the hands of an elf!" Gimli yelled standing from his seat as well and it was all downhill from there. The rest of the elf's that had attended the meeting stood from their seats offended by the dwarf's rude remark. From there the area erupted in a storm of screams and yells as insults were thrown and comebacks were made.

Sakura shook her head as she watched the men bicker as they strayed further and further away from what they were here to talk about. Sakura noticed that the only one who had yet to join in on the folly was the hobbit, Frodo. He still sat in his seat staring at the ring. Sakura could tell he was in deep thought and was battling with himself.

The look on his face was that of fear before it contorted into that of determination. "I will take it!" He yelled but his voice didn't seem to reach those around him that were still bickering.

Sakura stared wide eyed at the hobbit, why would he sign himself up for such a dangerous task, hobbits were not ones for war, they were peaceful folk and stuck to their homes for the most part.

"I will take it!" He yelled once more catching the attention of Gandalf and the others, and slowly the yelling started to quite down.

Sakura stood behind the pillar wracking her brain trying to find out why he was doing this to himself, he was either a very selfless hobbit or a very foolish one. But then she remembered what her father had said earlier, that he had carried the ring all the way to Rivendell without falling to its evil, maybe he was the only one who could carry it without falling under its spell.

"I will take the ring to Mordor." Frodo said once more after everyone had stopped yelling his voice more confident than before, everyone stared at the boy a range of emotions falling over their faces. "Though... I do not know the way..." Frodo said his voice less confidant this time as he looked down at the ground.

Gandalf smiled at the boys resolve, looking down at the young hobbit. "I will help you bare this burden, Fordo Baggins." Gandalf said with a smile on his face, he walked over to the boy and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder to try and calms his nerves a bit. "So long as it is your burden to bear." Frodo looked up at the old wizard a grateful look on his face.

"If by my life or death I can protect you, I will." Aragorn spoke up as he walked over to the hobbit and knelled before him, "You have my sword." Aragorn said finishing his oath to protect the hobbit.

"And you have my bow." Legolas said a smile on his face as he stepped up to the hobbit as well.

"And my axe." Gmili announced a smile hidden under his beard.

"You carry the fate of us all little one. If this is indeed the word of the council then Gondor will see it done." The man said as he approached the hobbit as well surprising Sakura with his pledge to protect Frodo as well.

Sakura listened as each person announced their loyalty to the hobbit who decided to risk his life to try and save Middle earth and it was at that moment that she decided what she needed to do.

"I will also accompany you on this journey." Sakura said, finally coming out from behind the pillar and approaching the group.

Everyone seemed stunned by her sudden appearance especially her father. She walked up to the men with the grace that only an elven princess held and the strength only a kunoichi possessed.

"I will not allow this of you Sakura." Elrond said his voice quite but the demand in his voice spoke volumes.

Sakura stared at her father, she knew he would not agree with her motives but she was no longer the elven princess that would sit behind and watch the world crumble around her. She was now a stronger woman than she ever thought possible and would fight for her people.

"I did not come home to sit idly by as others fight this battle. I will go with them father, it is my choice." Sakura said her voice full of grace and lethal beauty as she confronted her father. He stared back at her and a staring battle began between them neither seemed to be backing down but Sakura was determined to prove to her father she would do as she pleased. Once Elron realized he would not be able to keep his daughter in Rivendell knowing what she knew even if he demanded of it, he broke his eye contact. Sakura smiled at her father giving him silent thanks for understanding her need to protect those she loved.

"My lady, this journey is not one that an elf of nobility should thrust herself into." Legolas spoke up, not meaning any words of offence. While it was rare for elven women to fight on the battlefield he knew that most if not all elven women were trained to fight. Also while he had never met Sakura in person before, he had heard from his father and others that Sakura was known for her higher ability to fight, in a sense she reminded him a bit of Tauriel.

Sakura turned toward the Elven prince, she had visited Mirkwood many times but never once had she met their prince, but she had spent many a time conversing with his father. "Legolas son of Thranduil, prince of Mirkwood, I do believe that you know firsthand the ability of Elven women. _Lle naa belegohtar, nan' vee' amin. il ikotane ai en' amin"_ (You are a mighty worrier, but as am I. Do not think so little of me)

Sakura held Legolas's stare, it was a sign of respect and she was demanding he give her the respect she deserved, not as the noble Daughter of Elrond but as a warrior of equal status. Legolas kept eye contact with her for a bit longer before a smirk appeared on his lips, she was stubborn he would give her that much.

"We do not need the burdens of a woman to slow us down." The man from before from Gondor spoke once again and in a flash Sakura pulled out a kuni and launched it right at the man's face.

She aimed it so that it cut the side of his face enough so it immediately drew blood. The movement was so fast that barley anyone was able to register her motions. The elf's were the only ones to catch her movements, Elrond smiled at his daughter knowing she had already known how to fight before she was sent to a country of war, proud that she came back an even better warrior.

"Do no mistake me for a helpless woman that needs your protection." Sakura said venom dripping from her words yet they still held grace to them. She started walking over to the stunned man, the only thing that registered in his mind was that she had thrown something sharp at him and had cut him.

Once she was standing right in front of him she cursed her short stature, she barley reached his shoulders, but none the less she kept up her facade. She reached her hand up to the cut on his cheek, pushing some healing chakra into her fingers as she brushed the wound. Once her fingers fell away from his skin the wound was completely gone like it was never there in the first place. Everyone gasped at the exquisite healing abilities she displayed.

Elven healing powers were already seen as amazing as well as the most effective but even that could not compare to what she had just demonstrated and that was just a small cut.

"My skills are far more than adequate to take care of myself and my healing abilities will probably be the deciding factor in your life at some point during this journey." Sakura said as she backed away from the stunned man before her. She could tell she had gotten everyone's attention.

She looked over to Aragorn who was smiling at her antics; she was the same as she was before, always trying to prove herself. Not that she ever needed to her skills spoke for themselves and now she was even stronger than before.

Sakura smiled when she heard the foot falls of more visitors who were not meant to attend the meeting.

"You won't be going anywhere without us!" another hobbit yelled out as three hobbits ran to the middle of the gathering. Sakura couldn't help but admire their resolve to help what she assumed was their friend in his time of need.

"Yes it would be unwise to think you wouldn't go with Frodo, seeing as nothing can keep the two of you apart, even when he is called to a secret meeting and you are not." Elron said smirking as he looked at the three new hobbits and then at his own daughter.

Sakura smiled back at her father with a knowing look. Her father was a man who knew the importance of standing up for what they cherished and protecting it.

"10 companions. You shall be the fellowship of the ring." Elron said a proud smile on his face. The journey was going to a rough one, a life changing one and it would leave the fate of the world resting on their shoulders.

This would truly turn out to be in interesting journey indeed.

* * *

 **Alright so there you have it!**

 **What did you all think? good bad? Please let me know and review!**

 **Until next time,**

 **MidnightShadow0110**


	3. Not all those who Wander

**OMG I got 5 reviews so fast!**

 **I'm so glade that you all are liking the story so far!**

 **For everyone asking about romance there will of course be some later on! I will almost never write a story with no romance, I just think it adds to the drama! But I have to let everyones character build so flat out romance wont be till later chapter.**

 **Shout out to ShadowsEdge96: I had already written this chapter when you reviewed but after reading your review I was like "oh I need to add this to the letter because that would be a great twist!" so thank you for the idea! I love it!**

 **To all the rest of my readers if you have any suggestions you would like to see in this story please feel free to comment! I can't garentee that I'll use everything (I have the story vaugly planned out already) but I just might change it up if I fall in love with your ideas!**

 **Well lets go ahead and start!**

 **Here it is chapter 3 of "Not all those who wander are lost"**

* * *

 **Not all those who Wander**

The smell of fresh pine ghosted along with the soothing wind that whisper past a group of 10 companions. It had been a week since their departure from Rivendell and the group had decided to take a short break for the hobbits to rest their feet. Legolas watched as the pink haired elf sat nestled high in a tree, she seemed like she was waiting for something but for what he could not say. But as he watched the elven woman sit in silence his mind drifted to the fellowships departure a week ago

 _Flashback_

 _Everyone was gathered around the entrance to Rivendell, their things packed and they were saying their goodbyes to those who had gathered to see them off. Aragorn had just finished saying his goodbyes to Arewn when Sakura stepped up to her sister to do the same. It had been 15 years since the two had seen each other and they were about to be separated once again. Sakura knew that her sister was saddened by her departure but knew that she was even more grieved by Aragorn's departure. Being human they both knew that such perils that awaited the fellowship could very well end his life, and Sakura knew that the end of Aragorn's life would ultimately lead to the end of Arwen's life. Their two souls were intertwined so deeply that their fates would follow the same path._

 _Sakura looked at her sister with understanding, she had loved two people in her life time, she had lived long enough to know love when it knocked on her door. However she knew that she had never loved so deeply or been loved so deeply to the point that her soul would intertwine with another's. Sakura placed a hand on her sister's shoulder to get her attention. "_ Amin ho yassen coia seler _' (I will protect him with my life, sister)." Sakura whispered to make sure that only Arwen heard her words._

 _Arwen gave her sister a teary smile before embracing her in her arms. "_ Nan' en' seler' _(please take care sister)," Arwen whispered, the two sisters held each other for a moment knowing this could very well be their last encounter._

 _Legolas watched as Sakura and Arwen said their goodbyes, he looked away when Elrond started to approach him. "A word Legolas." Elrond said motioning for the elf prince to fallow him, once they were far enough away so no one could hear them Elrond turned around to face the young elf. "Ier beleg ohtar Legolas (You are a mighty warrior Legolas)" Elrond started to say._

 _Legolas was about to respond with a courteous thanks but Elrond held up his hand to stop him, "It was not meant to be a compliment but a statement." Elrond continued to say as he looked at the young elf. "My daughter is also a strong warrior... And has fought in her own war... But she is still my daughter and all I have left in this world are my daughters." Elrond said looking briefly over to his daughters._

 _He turned back to Legolas to continue, "I want you to watch over her... I cannot go on this perilous journey with her, nor can I stop her from going herself. Aragorn will watch out for her, this I know but Sakura can be quite the reckless woman." Elrond looked away from the elf, he knew what he was asking was not what this journey was for, the fellowship was meant to protect Frodo and the ring not his daughter but he could not help but worrying like only a father can do._

 _Legolas looked at the elf lord, he could understand the man's worry, "I will watch over her my lord, with my life I shall keep her safe." He spoke in a solemn voice to make sure that Elrond knew he was being serious. Lord Elrond had done many things for him since he had left Mirkwood and he was more than willing to return the favor._

 _Elrond looked Legolas in the eyes with a grateful stare, the two grasped forearms in understanding._

 _End flashback_

Sakura sat high in the tree that over looked the rest of the group. She wore a forest green, long sleeved, form fitting elven shirt that fell to her knees, splitting off into four sectioned peices as her hips. Underneath she wore a pair of tight dark brown, almost black pants and knee high brown leather boots. She was donned in a brown leather armor vest that clung to her waist as well as leather armor around her forarms. She wore her hair half up with twin braids that were elegantly weaved into her hair. She wore her kunai holster on her right thigh, twin swords rested on either side of her hips and her bow and arrows lay next to her.

She was waiting for word from Konoha, she had sent a messenger bird out before they had left on their journey, and she thought surly it had reached them by now. She thought if she set herself high enough in the trees that she would be more easily spotted by the messenger bird that Konoha would send her. She was about to give up for the day and join the others on the ground when she heard the cry of a familiar bird in the distance. She looked up and smirked when she saw Sasuke's black hawk flying her way. She should have known that Sasuke would take over communications, his birds were the fastest and had the most stealth, not only that but they could easily lock onto Sakura's chakra signature.

Sakura lifted her arm for the bird to land on and waited for his talons to grace the thin appendage. The bird landed gracefully on her arm, "Well done Daisuke." Sakura said, petting the bird a few times before taking the letter that was tied to his foot. She quickly unraveled to note anxious to see what it said.

 _Sakura,_

 _We have receive your letter about the brewing peril that your world is facing, and understand that the mission yourself and your companions have set out on is one of stealth and secrecy. We will keep in close contact and will send out help if we do not hear a response from you regularly. I am currently negotiating with the Kazakage on the behalf of our alliance with your people; I will continue negotiations as well as talk to the other Kages. If all goes well you will have the shinobi alliance on your side._

 _~Tsunade_

 _I will continue to send Daisuke to you once a week; Tsunade has allowed communications to be handled by myself and Kakashi, while she negotiates with the kages. Stay safe, we will see you soon._

 _~Sasuke_

The Letter was short and to the point, as were any letters that were handled during a mission but the letter brought some sort of resurgence to Sakura. For her it was a sign that her friends would not abandon her, she smiled as Daisuke nudged her face with his head from his perch on her shoulder. Sakura slowly pulled out a small piece of paper and began to write her response.

 _Sasuke,_

 _We are currently on rout to Mount Doom, we are far from our mark but so far we have had no encounters of trouble. I hope to hear from you soon._

 _p.s. Tell Naruto that he does not need to learn elvish, he will just end up butchering the language. And tell Ino I'm sorry that I couldn't say goodbye._

 _~Sakura_

She quickly tied the letter to Daisuke's foot, giving him one last pat on the head; she whispered some words of encouragement in the bird's ear before throwing her arm in the air and allowing the bird to take off. She watched as the black bird took flight, though it had only been a hand full of years that she had known the people of konoha it felt like she had known them her entire life. Though she knew they could never life even close to as long as half her life and it was because of this, because their lives were so short that it pained her to be away from them. She felt she was letting their lives slip through her fingers and soon they would all be gone.

Before the elven woman's thoughts could turn too dark a voice yelled up at her.

"Sakura!"

She knew that voice anywhere; it was that of one of her closest friends, she quickly flipped upside down over the tree branch she was perched on. She sent a small amount of chakra to her feet and allowed them to connect with the underside of the tree branch so that she was hanging upside down by her feet. "Yes?" Her voice was posed as sweet and innocent despite her smirking face that stared back at everyone else's surprised faces.

"Stop messing around we are heading out again." Aragorn laughed at his old friend, she could hear Gandalf laughing a little ways off as well which only made her smile wider. Sakura nodded her head in understanding before stopping the flow of chakra to her feet, flipping to the ground and landing on her feet. She secured her bow and arrows to her back before fallowing the rest of the group as they headed out through the forest.

"That bird. Where did it come from?" Legolas asked as he fell into step with Sakura. She felt a twinge of annoyance that the elf had been watching her but let it slide for the moment before answering him.

"It was a messenger bird. From the land I had been staying in for the past decade. There is an alliance there of strong warriors who will help us if a battle is to come." Sakura explained she didn't find the need to elaborate to the elf about the place she had been living. The conversation ended after that as Legolas nodded in understanding.

They walked in silence for a while until Mary and Pippin approached the pink haired elf. "My lady, how it is that you did that trick back there?" Pippin asked with curiosity, looking up at the elven woman with a smile on his face.

Sakura smiled back at the two hobbits she enjoyed the curious nature of the hobbits, though she knew better they reminded her of innocent children. "Twas not a trick really, it is a skill One that I learned while I was far away in another land." Sakura said smiling down at the hobbits although her explanation did not seem to quench their curiosity. She thought for a moment longer to see how she could elaborate on what she meant, "for the last decade I have been living in a land far away from here, where warriors known as shinobi reign as the protectors of villages in that country."

"What are shinobi milady?" Mary questioned, it seems that her explanation had only brought about more curiosity. Sakura continued to walk alongside the hobbits, Legolas had long left her side to walk alongside Aragorn and it seemed that the two hobbits would not be satisfied till they knew everything about this other world.

"Shinobi are warriors that use chakra to fight, and please just call me Sakura." She pink haired woman said before going into more detail about the world she considered a second home.

Sakura talked with the hobbits about the shinobi nations for hours, at some point Sam and Frodo had joined the conversation, fascinated by this other world that they had never heard of. Sakura made sure to keep out painful details such as the wars she fought in and the people she had lost but told the Halflings everything else they wanted to know about konoha and the other nations. They talked so long that Sakura hadn't even realized that the sun was starting to set till Gandalf spoke up, "We shall camp here for the night." Gandalf's words made the group stop in their travels.

Boramer and Gimli went about making a fire while Legolas and Aragorn went to find dinner for everyone, Sakura decided that she would scout the surrounding area to make sure no one was around and maybe set up a few chakra barriers. She took off to the trees; she heard the surprised gasp of the hobbits once again before she was quickly out of ear shoot.

Sakura decided that a mile would be a fair and safe enough radius to scout, it would give them time to run if anything did come their way and would allow her to keep up a strong chakra barrier. It took her a little less than an hour to run the miles radius of the camp site and set up the chakra markers. Once she had set up the last chakra marker she decided to take a short break. Her elven ears could hear the sound of water not too far off and she was in desperate need of a bath.

Sakura fallowed her ears to a small two layered river, the upper layer dropped down to a waterfall into the second layer. The waterfall was nothing marvelous to look at, the ledge from which the water fell from was just a foot taller than her, but it would be perfect for a nice shower. She searched the woods to make sure no one was around her before checking the camp site to make sure everything was going alright before quickly stripping off her clothes. She took to cleaning them at the water's edge before hanging them up to dry.

Once her clothes were in order she pushed a bit of chakra into her feet before stepping out onto the water's surface. The cool water felt amazing under her feet and she took her time to leisurely walk over to the waterfall. She wasn't worried about anyone passing by, there were trees all around to cover her as well as alert her if anyone were to come her way.

She reached the waterfall, and slowly stepped underneath the flowing water. The pounding water felt wonderful on her fair skin and did wonders with washing away all the dirt and grime that had accumulated there. She felt a bit spoiled having found such a thing on her perimeter scouting and she was bound and determined to enjoy every minute of it.

Well until she heard the firm crunch of leaves that told her someone was in the area, Sakura quickly stopped the chakra flow to her feet and allowed her body to drop into the water.

"Sakura?" A masculine voice echoed in the pink haired woman's ears telling her that the person approaching was not an enemy. But that fact alone did not quite the sparking anger that was growing with every step the man took toward her.

"Legolas, I swear if you take one more step I will make sure your father can never retire the throne to you!" Sakura yelled from the water. The elven man stopped in his tracks, but he had already reached the break in the trees that opened up to the rive that Sakura was currently bathing in.

Legolas looked around confused for a moment when he took of Sakura's cloths hanging to dry on a tree branch next to him. The elf's faces tinted with red before he quickly turned around so to give the elven woman some privacy. "When you didn't come back to camp we started to get a little worried." Legolas tried to explain, he could hear the slosh of water as Sakura stepped out of the river and onto land. Legolas stepped a bit away from the tree that held Sakura's cloths knowing that that would be her knew destination.

"By _we_ you mean _you_ right?" Sakura said her voice slightly tipped with venom. Once she reached her cloths she did a small series of hand signs before whispering, "Wind." A swirling gust of wind surrounded herself and her cloths, instantly drying them both. It was a technique that she and Naruto had come up while away on a mission to Rain country.

"I'm not quite sure I understand what you mean." Legolas said trying to ignore the fact that the elven woman was dressing just a few meters away from him. He was a chivalrous and well mannered man and would never spy on a woman but that did not take away from the fact that he had accidentally stumbled upon Sakura.

"I think you know quite well what I mean. You've been watching me since the moment we left Rivendell." Sakura hissed as she slipped her boots on. Once she was completely dressed she walked toward Legolas, who took this as his sign to head back to the camp. "I did not take you to be an ignorant man, your father spoke very highly of you every time we talked. Yet I find you watching my every move, do you doubt my strength so much?" Sakura hissed once again. She was tired of always feeling the elf's eyes on her, like he was waiting for her to slip up. Sakura was a proud woman and hated nothing more than when someone looked down on her. She had sworn to herself that she would never again be the helpless genin that needed people to watch over her.

"My lady I assure you that is not my intent." Legolas tried to reason with her, he had agreed to watch over the elven woman for Elrond's sake but he had not intended to make Sakura feel as if he doubted her strength.

"You'd do well not to question my strength prince of Mirkwood." Sakura hissed Legolas paused the moment he felt Sakura's blade pointed at his back. Sakura smirked thinking she had made her point and was about to put her sword away when Legolas quickly twisted around to face her. In a split second he had used the end of his bow to knock the sword out of Sakura's hand before arming his bow and pulling the arrow back, ready to be released.

"You would do well not to point your sword at me. _amin il poldora_ (I do not doubt your strength)." Legolas kept his voice strong and even, he slowly withdrew his arrow and put away his bow before continuing on to the camp site.

Sakura paused for a moment still shocked before she jogged to catch up to the elf prince. The two walked in an awkward silence for a long while before Legolas decided to speak. "I do not wish to ascend the throne." His voice was soft, which greatly contradicted the events that had just transpired. Sakura stared at his back in question not understanding where his statement had come from. "Earlier you said you would make it so my father could not retire me to the throne, but I do not wish to do so anyway." Legolas finally said elaborating on what he had said moments ago.

Remembering her threat from earlier Sakura understood now where the statement had came from but she now had a new question. "You don't wish to attain your birth right?" Sakura questioned. Elf's were very centered around their families, and refusing a title was never as simple as refusing a title it was like refusing ones family.

Sakura had met Legolas' father many times and knew the man quite well, he was a callus man who thought he was better than others especially those outside of elven blood. But he was also a kind man who cared deeply for his people and would do anything to protect them, even if that meant turning away from the other races and abandoning the call to war. His thinking seemed harsh and he was known as such to most people but Sakura knew better, she understood him and his way of thinking even if she did not always agree with it.

Sakura took Legolas' silence as a yes to her question so she followed up with another question, "What will you do if you turn away from your family's name?" she knew it was a lofty question, especially since she had just pointed her sword at him moments ago, but she was curious. She did not take Legolas as someone to abandon his kindred.

Legolas stopped in his pursuit to the campsite, they were just meters away from the rest of the group and Sakura could hear Gimli talking to the hobbits about something or another. The eleven prince did not turn around but stood tall just feet away from the pink haired woman," Live." The words leaked out of his mouth so smoothly that Sakura had to question whether or not she had really heard him speak at all. But when the elf began to walk back into camp Sakura knew that that had been his response to her question.

' _Live huh? You are either very wise or very naïve.'_ Sakura thought as she fallowed the elven man back into camp. She wasn't quite sure what the elf meant by his response but she knew it held meaning deeper than she could comprehend at that moment in time.

"Ai Lassie, could you give this old man a hand with the food before he burns it?" Gimli yelled from across the camp. Sakura giggled at the sight of Gandalf cooking some fish over the newly made fire. Out of the many years Sakura had known Gandalf she had not once seen him cook anything and she assumed that he was a bit novice when it came to the culinary arts. The man could do magic but he could not cook up fish.

"Well if you don't like my cooking then you can go hungry." Gandalf barked back to Gimli in a gruff voice which only made Sakura giggle more. She gave Gandalf a pat on the shoulder, letting him know that she would take over the cooking. Many times on her missions with team seven she had been suckered into cooking the meals and at first she had done just as bad a Gandalf. Before she had arrived to the land of shinobi she had never cooked in her life, others had always cooked for her; she so felt Gandalf's pain.

* * *

The fellowship had reached the rocky terrain of the mountainous region; currently they were on the path to the misty mountains, which Sakura found a bit strange. The misty mountains would lead them away from Mordor before leading them back; however she had never known Gandalf to do anything without reason so she did not question the trail in which they were taking.

The group was currently taking a break, which was posing to be more often than Sakura would like. She was used to running for days on end and not stopping till she reached her destination, however during those trips she often took far too many solider pills which in many cases could make the person taking them crash. Knowing this Sakura knew that the breaks were meant to keep the group alert and ready should anything troublesome be presented to them. She had been using the breaks to sharpen her blades but had finally run out of weapons to sharpen. She was currently sitting beside Gandalf and Aragorn watching Boramer teach Merry and Pippin swordplay.

The scene was quite enduring, the two hobbits seemed to be enjoying themselves and Boramer was even smiling along with them. The journey had softened Sakura's harsh outlook on Boramer, she found him to be a kind enough man with a good heart and good intentions, although he did still hold some bigoted views on her strength and ability.

Sakura could smell the food Sam was preparing and it made her mouth water in anticipation. Sam had told her he would take over the cooking, saying he wanted to do something useful. Frodo was sitting next to the hobbit watching him work.

"We must hold this course to the misty mountains for 40 days, if our luck holds the gap of Rohan will still be open to us. From there our road turns east to Mordor." Gandalf's words echoed in Sakura's ears, the wizard was talking to Aragorn but spoke loud enough for everyone to hear. Sakura nodded in understanding, if they kept up with the path they were going it would more than likely take more than 40 days to reach Rohan, but she knew it could not be helped.

"If anyone was asking for my opinion, which I note they're not, I'd say we were taking the long way around." Gimli said gruffly, expressing Sakura's earlier thoughts. "Gandalf we could pass through the mines of Moria, my cousin Bolin would give us a royal welcome." Gimli continued. Sakura turned toward the Dwarf who sat a few feet away on a large pile of rocks, she was interested in hearing what Gandalf had to say about the whole ordeal.

"No Gimli I would not take the road to Moria unless I had no other choice." Gandalf answered, giving the dwarf a very serious look. This made Sakura question even further why they were taking the long way around. The way Gandalf was talking made her think that their journey would become more dangerous if they were to go through the mines of Moria.

Sakura sat contemplating the issue of Moria for a moment more until she noticed Legolas looking out to the expanse of the open terrain. Wondering what it was he was looking at Sakura stood, leaping over a few large rocks before she stood next to the elf. "What do you see?" The pinkette questioned from the blondes side, but he continued to look off into the distance. She fallowed the man's line of vision till she spotted what looked like a black cloud.

The yelp of a hobbit caught Sakura's attention for a moment which made the pink haired woman turn around to see Boramer apologizing to Merry for what she assumed was an accidental injury. Sakura giggled at the sight of Merry kicking the steward or Gondors son in the shin before Merry and Pippin wrestled said man to the ground. "For the Shire!" Pippin yelled in a joking manor making Boramer and the observing Aragorn laugh at the hobbits antics.

"What is that?" Sam asked from next to the fire, he had caught Legolas' gaze and was staring at the black cloud as well. Sakura turned back to the black blob only to see it was getting closer.

"Nothing it's just a wisp of cloud." Gimli said, giving the black form a quick look before dismissing it.

"It's moving fast… and against the wind."Boramer said looking up to the sky as well, it was then that Sakura realized what exactly the black blob was.

"Crebain from Dunland!" Legolas said before Sakura could utter the words herself.

"Hide!" Aragorn yelled at the group, making everyone jump to their feet in seconds. Sakura stared at the large black birds as they approached for a moment more before she ran over to Frodo. He was their charge and the most important person in the group.

Sakura grabbed the small hobbit pulling him and Sam down behind a large rock with her before she performed a number of hand signs. Sakura just barley set up the genjutsu to hide herself and the hobbits before the large birds flew over their heads. She made sure to conceal the fire and the rest of the group as well just in case the birds happened to fly in the right angel in which to see them.

It only took a few moments before the birds had all passed over them, Sakura released the concealing genjutsu, and everyone began to come out from behind the large rocks that they had taken cover with.

"Spies of Sorumon, the passage south is being watched." Gandalf said in a knowing voice, "We must take the pass of Caradhras." The old wizard said. Sakura looked off into the distance at the large snow topped mountains in the distance that Gandalf spoke of. The icy chill of that mountain was well known and should a blizzard fall upon them while they were in the mountains the road would be almost un-travel-able.

Sakura knew the black birds of Sorumon were a sign, from here on out the road would become much more difficult and their group would face many more hardships in their journey.

* * *

 **So what did you all think!?**

 **Liked it? loved it? want to marry it!? Just kidding but please let me know what you thought! I love hearing from all of you, it feuls my typing hands!**

 **You all know how it goes review and I shall update!**

 **Until next time!**

 **MidnightShadow0110**


End file.
